Get Involved

USAAW is an annual observance that highlights the steps everyone can take to improve antibiotic prescribing and use.

U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week is November 12-18, 2018.

Antibiotics save lives and are critical tools for treating a number of common and more serious infections, like those that can lead to sepsis. However, at least 30% of the antibiotics in U.S. outpatient settings are prescribed unnecessarily. Any time antibiotics are used, they can cause side effects and lead to antibiotic resistance, one of the most urgent threats to the public’s health.

Antibiotic resistance happens when bacteria develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them. Each year in the United States, at least 2 million people become infected with bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics and at least 23,000 people die as a direct result. Many more die from complications from antibiotic-resistant infections.

Patient Education

Improving the way healthcare professionals prescribe antibiotics, and the way we take antibiotics, helps keep us healthy now, helps fight antibiotic resistance, and ensures that these lifesaving drugs will be available for future generations.

USAAW is a collaboration of CDC, state-based programs, nonprofit partners, and for-profit partners. You can join official USAAW events or host your own. There are many ways to get involved!

Partner organizations—including federal agencies, health departments, professional societies, corporations, and advocacy groups—are critical to the success of U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week and to raising awareness about the importance of appropriate antibiotic use throughout the year.

In the past, more than 300 organizations have participated in the observance in a variety of ways—from joining activities and events to using resources from our toolkit to post to their websites, share on social media, distribute via newsletters, and advertise. To order select free print resources, call 1-800-CDC-INFO or visit CDC-INFO on Demand – Publications and select “Antibiotic Use” from the Programs drop-down menu. Then click the “Search” button to view all available publications.